Which seasonal spices can be dangerous for dogs?

"The holiday bakery is full of tasty treats…" – does this apply to your home as well? Because during the holiday season, the great bake-off begins in many homes. Beloved family recipes are dug up, while Christmas carols echo from the radio. Over several hours, various types of holiday cookies are made – in my house, it's usually these five types: Cinnamon stars, vanilla kipferl, Florentine biscuits, nougat horns and gingerbread. Afterwards, the kitchen looks as if a bomb made of flour, chocolate chips and chopped almonds exploded, but the entire house smells of Christmas and the scent of cloves, vanilla, cinnamon and chocolate wafts through the air.

As tasty as these holiday cookies are, they are not suitable for your dog. In addition to sugar, the recipes also contain several spices that can be harmful – or in large amounts even toxic – for your dog. Should your dog snatch a cookie from the cookie platter, when you're not looking, then watch them carefully. Should you dog experience symptoms like nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, extreme disquiet or even disorientation, then take them to a vet at once.

The following seasonal ingredients and spices can be harmful for your dog:

• Cocoa
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Cloves
• Cassia cinnamon

Bake gingerbread with healthy seasonal spices for your dog

In order to spare your dog and yourself the stress of possible food poisoning during the holiday season, store your own holiday cookies out of the reach of your dog. Meanwhile, you can bake holiday treats specifically for your dog, which he or she can actually eat, such as gingerbread for dogs. In the following, I'm sharing a recipe for gingerbread seasoned only with spices which are harmless and even healthy for your dog.

These seasonal spices are suitable for dog biscuits:

• Genuine vanilla: improves the mood
• Anis: strengthens respiratory tract and the digestive system
• Ceylon cinnamon: has an anti-inflammatory effect, quickens the appetite and improves digestion. Caution: Make sure to use only Ceylon cinnamon, because cassia cinnamon is toxic for dogs.
• Cardamom: relaxing, prevents cramping and improves digestion
• Coriander: has a strong anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effect and stimulates circulation

With all spices, make sure to use them sparingly.

Recipe: Gingerbread houses for dogs

These little gingerbread houses are quick and easy to bake. This gingerbread for dogs is not just tasty, however, but also healthy. Because the gingerbread contains tasty seasonal spices, which also have a positive effect on your dog's health.

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 150 g whole grain spelt flour
• 50 g soft oatmeal
• 40 g ground almonds
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 1 tablespoon of sunflower oil
• 0,5 tablespoon of Ceylon cinnamon
• 1 pinch of cardamom
• 1 pinch of coriander
• 1 tablespoon of carob powder
• 130 ml water

Icing:

• 10 g cornstarch
• 100 ml coconut milk
• honey

Other supplies:

• Cookie cutter "gingerbread house"
• Icing bag

1.Preheat the oven to 180° C. Add all dry ingredients to a bowl and mix thoroughly.

2.Add honey, sunflower oil and water. Knead all ingredients with a dough hook into a smooth dough. Afterwards, knead the dough with your hands on a flour-covered surface and add a bit of flour, until the dough is no longer sticky.

Tip: If your dough is too sticky, add more flour. If the dough seems too dry and crumbly, you can add a bit of water.

3.Spread some flour on a smooth surface and roll out the dough with a rolling pin to a thickness of approx. 5 mm. Use the cookie cutter to cut gingerbread houses out of the dough. Place the gingerbread onto a baking sheet covered with baking parchment.

4.Whisk the egg with a bit of water and apply to the topside of the gingerbread house with a brush. Bake the dog gingerbread for approx. 25-30 minutes and then let them cool thoroughly.

5.For the icing, mix the cornstarch with 3 tablespoons of coconut milk into a smooth mixture. Heat the remaining coconut milk until it boils and add the cornstarch mix while constantly stirring.

6.Let the icing cool down a little. The fill it into an icing bag (or a freezer bag with one of the lower corners cut off) and decorate the gingerbread houses with icing.

Then the tasty gingerbread houses for dogs are finished! We wish you a happy holiday season and a lot of fun baking.

Holiday gift ideas for your dog

Are you still looking for a great holiday gift for your dog? Then surprise him or her with the Candyman – a plush gingerbread man for dogs. This cute gingerbread man is perfect for cuddling and playing. Your dog can use the Candyman for retrieval games or they can roughhouse and cuddle with the toy. Because one of the advantages of the Candyman is that he does not have a squeak box. Dogs with a low stimulus threshold can be unnecessarily stimulated by loud squeaks. Other dogs are frightened of the noise. My dog Olaf belongs to the second category. Therefore, the Candyman is the perfect toy for him. However, the Candyman is not the only great and soundless holiday gift. The little Plüsch Rudolph has no squeak box as well and will be a delightful holiday surprise for your dog.